


In the Streets you Run Afree

by Hubris_BNL



Category: In the Heights - Miranda
Genre: Bullying, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Mild Language, Protect Sonny 2k16
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-14
Updated: 2016-11-14
Packaged: 2018-08-31 00:44:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,248
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8555971
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hubris_BNL/pseuds/Hubris_BNL
Summary: He wasn’t running away. He wasn't. He was just...clearing his head, is all.





	

**Author's Note:**

  * For [pikaace](https://archiveofourown.org/users/pikaace/gifts).



He wasn’t running away. He  _ wasn’t _ . He was just...clearing his head, is all. The insults those assholes had thrown at him in the hallways before shoving him in that locker still burned in his mind. He need to walk, needed to let off some steam somewhere that wasn’t the barrio. Somewhere where no one would ask any questions. 

He couldn’t deal with that right now.

So he continued to walk, until he came to an unfamiliar bridge, until his legs felt like they would give out under him at any moment.

He paused, taking a breath, walking to the railing and staring down into the dark blue water. Above him, clouds gathered, and the sun set slowly, the last light of the day crossing his face. He slowly took his hat off and ran a hand through his curls, breathing deeply. He just needed to clear his head. 

He didn’t notice his cellphone vibrating madly in his backpack.

* * *

 

Usnavi dialled Sonny’s phone for what seemed like the millionth time. His cousin wasn’t picking up and it was starting to get dark outside. 

“Come on, Sonny. Where are you?”

“Has he answered yet?” Vanessa asked, worry evident in her voice as she leaned over the counter.

It had been two hours since school had been let out, and Sonny always,  _ always  _ came right to work after school. Nina had gone to check and see if he had stayed there, after Usnavi had left his fifth voicemail. She returned immediately, shaking her head.

“The secretaries said they saw him leave. He’s not there.”

Usnavi had then tried calling Pete.

“No, he told me he couldn’t hang out today because he was going straight home.”

He was starting to get frustrated. As soon as they found Sonny, he was grounded for a week! 

“No,” he answered Vanessa, taking off his hat and running a hand through his hair, “Where the hell could he be?”

The bell over the bodega door jingled and Benny, poked his head in, his own look of concern written on his face.

“Any sign of him?”

Usnavi shook his head again and Benny cursed.

“Is there anywhere else we haven’t checked that he might have gone?”

“We checked all over the barrio.” Vanessa said, “Does he  _ know  _ anywhere else?”

Usnavi shrugged, looking defeated. He wasn’t of course, just...he worried about his little cousin. He never said much about his feelings or about things that happened to him, he may seem like an open book, but Usnavi knew that Sonny was very private. 

Sometimes it frightened him, because he would realize how much he didn’t know about his life, and if something was wrong, if Sonny was feeling...not right, how was he supposed to help if he didn’t know.

“I’ll keep looking.” Benny sighed and Usnavi looked at him gratefully. He didn’t know what else to do. So he picked up the phone and called again.

* * *

 

Benny walked through the streets of the barrio, shouting Sonny’s name as loud as he could. Where the hell had that kid gone!? He could see how it was killing Usnavi. He had to remember to give that kid a stern talking to when he found him. 

Because Benny  _ would  _ find him.

Eventually, he was walking out of the Heights and into less familiar parts of New York, still calling Sonny’s name through the streets. He didn’t know how Sonny would have made it this far, but it was worth a try.

After about half an hour of shouting, Benny almost decided to head back, break it to Usnavi that it was no use, they’d have to continue looking in the morning. He was about to, until;

“Oh my God.” Benny panted, his feet halting as he came upon a bridge not far away.

A distinctly Sonny shaped figure sat on the railing, hunched over, looking down into the water below. Benny thanked God momentarily that Usnavi wasn’t with him, because he’d be freaking out that Sonny was on the bridge at all, sitting precariously like that.

He approached slowly, carefully, not wanting to scare the kid and make him fall, but as he drew closer, his heart clenched slightly.

It was definitely Sonny. He sat almost curled in on himself, his head in his hands, and as Benny finally got close enough, he could see him shaking slightly, not just from the cold. He could also hear muffled whimpers coming from the boy.

Sonny was crying.

Benny finally made himself known, because Sonny crying on the railing of a bridge did not make for an optimistic combination.

“Hey, kid.” 

Sonny jumped slightly, faltering on the railing of the bridge. His fingers held tightly, and he turned to see Benny standing behind him, hands in his pockets and looking slightly out of breath. 

“Benny!? What the hell are you doing out here?”

The man walked over to where Sonny sat, pulling himself up onto the rail to sit next to him. Their legs dangled over the edge.

“I could ask you the same thing.” Benny turned to look at Sonny sternly, “It’s almost midnight, Usnavi’s worried sick, and you’re all the way out here.”

Sonny scowled and looked back down into the water below them. Benny wasn’t stupid, and neither was Sonny. There was no way he’d come all the way out here without even calling Usnavi to let him know, unless something was wrong.

And by the look on the boy’s face, something  _ was  _ wrong.

“Did something happen today, Sonny?”

The boy looked away, his mouth shut in a tight, thin line as he shook his head fiercely. 

“You wanna talk about it?” Benny pressed.

“No.” 

Benny leaned forward slightly, being careful to hold onto the rail. He let out a heavy sigh.

“Sonny.”

“Yeah?”

“Where’s your other shoe?”

“....it fell off. Made a good sized splash though.”

Benny ran a hand over his eyes. As if Usnavi would care what kind of splash Sonny’s shoe had made when it fell into the water. 

“C’mon now, kid. What are you doing all the way out here? Usnavi’s having a conniption back home. Where’s your phone?”

Sonny gestured to his backpack which sat leaning against the bars of the bridge. 

“You can’t do this, Sonny.” Benny scolded, “You should have at least called Usnavi-”

“I don’t need a lecture from you, Benny!” Sonny shouted, whipping around to face him. “I get it! I’m a fuck up! I’ve heard that enough today, I don’t need to hear it from you!”

Benny blinked, his mouth having gone dry, unsure of how to respond. Sonny glared at him for a moment more, before looking away again, his teeth bared. 

“Son, that’s- that’s not what I meant. I’m sorry. Please tell me what’s wrong.”

“Those fucking assholes at school!” Sonny shouted,  “They shoved me in a locker, I missed my last period and got chewed out by my asshole teacher and got detention! I tried to tell him, but he wouldn’t listen! He just took their side, said I probably provoked them! He always takes their side!”

Benny didn’t speak, only watched as Sonny ripped off his hat and ran a hand angrily through his curls.

“They called me...they called me-” he shook his head violently, biting his lip and turning away from Benny. His shoulder shook.

“Hey Son, it’s alright, it’s okay.” he moved moved back over the railing so he was standing, and reached out for Sonny to do the same. 

The boy turned slowly, keeping his head down and his eyes on his hands. Benny bent down so he could look up into Sonny’s eyes. They were red and puffy, and more tears were spilling down his cheeks.

“Those guys don’t matter jack shit, and you know it. Fuck them. You think any of those guys could hold down an entire store by themselves like you do?”

Sonny hesitated, but shook his head slowly.

“You think any of those guys could’ve stood up to those thugs during the blackout like you did? Hell, they would have run screaming down the street, pissing their pants.”

That got the boy to smile a bit, and he let out a small chuckle. Benny smiled as well.

“Those assholes don’t have shit on you. They couldn’t last one day down here. Let alone with that cousin of yours, right?”

Sonny laughed loudly, wiping his eyes on his shirt sleeve. And hopping off the railing of the bridge. Benny stood up, pulling Sonny into a hug and the boy let him, his tears staining Benny’s shirt. He rested a hand on Sonny’s hair.

“You remember that, Son. You don’t listen to a word those assholes say, because they’re wrong. As wrong as anyone could ever be. And if you tell Usnavi I was swearing to you like this, I will personally place you in the closet of the Bodega.”

“My lips are sealed, Benny.”

“Good. Then lets get home, I’m exhausted.” he ruffled the kid’s hair gently, “You really gave me a workout, how’d you get all the way out here anyway.”

Sonny shrugged, standing on one foot next to Benny, his shoeless foot hanging an inch above the ground.

“After school I just...walked, as far away from home as I could.”

“Well, it’s gonna be a bitch getting back,” Benny crouched down, “hop on.”

“What!? No way, I-”

“Usnavi’s already gonna kill you for losing your shoe.” he pointed out, “I don’t want him killing me too because I let you walk home like that.”

Sonny seemed to be weighing his options, before he finally jumped on Benny’s back. The kid was surprisingly light...he’d mention that to Usnavi, make sure he was eating everything that was put on his plate.

So with Sonny on his back, Benny began the walk back to the barrio. When he heard the light snoring, he huffed out a laugh. The poor kid was probably both physically  _ and emotionally  _ tired, and Benny didn’t blame him.

The streetlights guided the two of them back home, and if Benny squinted, he could see the silhouette of Usnavi, pacing back and forth in front of the Bodega. Finally, he caught sight of them, and visibly sagged with relief.

“Sonny! Oh my God, Benny thank you so much!” Usnavi shouted, running up to the two. 

“He’s asleep,” Benny whispered, “I can bring him up to the apartment, if you want.”

“That’d be great.” Usnavi smiled at the young boy, fast asleep, face pressed against Benny’s shoulder, snoring softly.

Benny followed Usnavi home, adjusting his hold on the kid every now and again.

“Did he...did he say anything?” Usnavi asked, “Where was he? What was he doing? He looks like he’s been crying! What happened!?”

“I think something might have happened at school. A couple of assholes shoved him in a locker, called him some pretty nasty things. One of teachers yelled at him too, because he missed a class while he was in the locker.”

“ _WHAT!?”_ Usnavi shouted but immediately bit his lip when Sonny stirred, “Who the hell do they think they are!? I’m going right in there tomorrow and I’m gonna give them a piece of my mind!”

“I’ll come with you.” Benny laughed, but there was an edge to his voice. He didn’t like seeing Sonny hurt any more than Usnavi did.

He’d known the kid since the moment he came to the Heights and he remembered it vividly too. A little boy hanging on Usnavi’s shirt like a lifeline when he and Benny would hang out. Sonny De la Vega had become a staple in the barrio, 

When Usnavi’s parents had died, it had taken the entire neighborhood to raise Sonny right, because Abuela hadn’t been able to do it alone, and Usnavi, as much as he was Sonny’s main parental figure, had always been working. So the little boy had been passed around whenever needed.

Benny could still remember when he used to do his homework on Mr. Rosario’s desk in the dispatch, Sonny would sometimes be beside him, colouring or just watching him with those big eyes of his.

Sonny was really a child of the barrio, and whenever anything happened to him, you could bet the neighborhood would be behind him 100%.

The two men reached Usnavi’s apartment and he unlocked the door quickly. Suddenly, Usnavi’s phone rang and he hastily answered it, while holding the door open for Benny.

“Yeah? Yeah, Vanessa, Benny found him. Tell Nina he’s alright. What? Oh, I’ll tell you tomorrow. Mmhmm. Okay, see ya. Love ya.”

He hung up the phone and rolled his eyes at the look Benny was giving him.

“Shut up.”

“I didn’t say nothin’ man.”

Usnavi hummed, following Benny into the apartment. He guided him to the room Usnavi and Sonny had shared, even since they were young, and he gestured to the bed.

“I’ll keep him home tomorrow,” Usnavi said thoughtfully, as Benny carefully lowered the boy off his back. The two placed him on the bed without Sonny even stirring, “But I’m going in there. There’s no way they’re gonna treat Sonny like this.”

“Call me before you go,” Benny said, “I’m serious about coming with you.”

“What?” Usnavi glared humorously at his best friend, “You don’t think I’m intimidating enough?”

“Not even close, little homie.”

He shoved Benny and the two laughed, before Usnavi crouched down to remove Sonny’s shoes. He paused.

“Hey Benny?”

“Yeah?”

“...where’s his other shoe?”

**Author's Note:**

> :D come shout at me abt how amazing and precious Sonny is @hamilanne


End file.
